Walking around Sandy Point State Park on Saturday afternoon, a crowd of colorful carousers interspersed with families from all over the region are busy exchanging horror stories of the chilly waters of the Chesapeake Bay.

Pete, Andrew's father, is quick to tell you he was two years, 6 months and 13 days old.

"Andrew was never sick," Julie Dowley, Andrew's mother, said Sunday at Glen Burnie Bowl. "He was never on any antibiotics … So, to have it happen, … it's mind blowing, kind of."

Andrew died while taking a nap, and his autopsy ruled he died of natural causes, the Dowleys said.

His death was placed in the category of sudden unexplained death in childhood, or SUDC – similar to sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS, but in children, at least a year old.

The Dowleys said it was hard not having a concrete reason for Andrew's death.

"When you get a child ripped away from you, for no cause (or) reason, it questions everything in your heart," Pete Dowley said. "We still don't know why. So the only thing we can do is move forward and try and make it so nobody else has to deal with what we deal with."

All the profits from Andrew's Pins for a Purpose go to the SUDC Foundation, the Dowleys said.

The foundation raises money to fund research about SUDC, raise aware and support families who have lost a child to SUDC.

Joshua McKerrow, staff / Capital Gazette

Bob Mack bowls at Andrew's Pins for a Purpose, a fundraiser in memory of Andrew Dowley, who died of Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood, at Glen Burnie Bowl.

Bob Mack bowls at Andrew's Pins for a Purpose, a fundraiser in memory of Andrew Dowley, who died of Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood, at Glen Burnie Bowl. (Joshua McKerrow, staff / Capital Gazette)

Lorri Caffrey, the foundation's co-founder and assistant director, is also an SUDC parent. She said events like Sunday's fundraiser, which she attended, are important in part because they help raise awareness of SUDC.

"Often times, the first time someone learns about SUDC is when their child dies," Caffrey said. "It's very rare and very unknown, but we're working really hard to change that."

At the Glen Burnie bowling alley on Sunday, Andrew's smiling face was on pins and banners. Many of the bowlers sported matching T-shirts with the words "Andrew's Team" printed on the back. The T-shirts, like the balloons on tables, were green – Andrew's favorite color.